TiVo launches the TiVo Mini for other rooms in your house

There’s still very little in the DVR world that can compete with a TiVo, unless you’ve got access to a Dish Network Hopper. Assuming that you don’t use Dish, or you’re already invested in a TiVo, the company has announced the TiVo Mini to connect to all of the other televisions in your house.

There’s not really a good reason for most users to own multiple TiVo units. They are expensive, and now that the Premiere XL exists in the company’s lineup you can record four HD shows simultaneously without any issues. All you would really need after that would be a way to access that content from other rooms in the house, and that’s exactly what the TiVo Mini does. These interface devices can either grab an unused tuner from the main unit to watch live TV, or access previously recorded content. The boxes have access to all the same features as the Premiere, it just leaves the primary hardware to do the heavy lifting. As long as you can connect a TiVo Mini to a MoCA or Ethernet connection, the experience should be exactly the same as on your primary box.

Curiously, there’s a monthly fee or lifetime subscription requirement with a TiVo Mini. On top of the $99 for the STB, you must either pay $5.99 per month or $149 for the lifetime of the device in order to access all the features that are available with this package. That makes the TiVo priced on par with a Hopper Joey, which is essentially what this hardware was designed to compete with. Instead of paying Dish the monthly fee, you’re paying TiVo. As long as you only need one device for recording, like the Premiere XL, the TiVo Mini would be all around less expensive than a separate TiVo in another part of the house. This service exists separate from the $129 TiVo Stream service, which allows you to access recorded content on any mobile device.

It’s hard not to view this move as anything other than TiVo competing with Dish Network, but TiVo enthusiasts should be excited all the same. As long as the TiVo Mini provides a seamless experience across your network, and is able to function just as fast as current generation hardware, it will be significantly more affordable to put a TiVo in every room.